Relax, it's nothing like that. He just dueled in the National Tournament and wanted to ask a senior whether the Salamangreat archetype can be fused with the Mathmech core.
Seeing the strange look on You Ye's face, Luo Ma hurriedly smiled and explained, afraid You Ye might misunderstand.
"Oh, that? No problem. I actually wanted to see him as well," You Ye said with a smile.
Based on the intelligence Zhao Jingqing had provided earlier, You Ye already knew that his first-round opponent in the National Tournament was a duelist using the Salamangreat archetype.
He had also planned to make contact after the duel to study Salamangreat more closely.
He wasn't particularly interested in the Link-6, fully-immune boss monster, but several Salamangreat cards were genuinely useful.
Especially [Salamangreat Gazelle]—a special summon point in Cyberse decks. It could send cards to the Graveyard and even grant full protection to monsters on the field.
And when combined with Salamangreat Fusion, it could work together with "I:P Masquerena" to form a U-lock.
He had already obtained Masquerena after gaining the Mathmech archetype through the Duel Association.
He just hadn't found the right opportunity to use it—until now.
"Oh? Then I'll notify him," Tian Nan said, smiling along with Luo Ma after hearing You Ye agree.
But in the very next instant, the smile vanished from Tian Nan's face, replaced with disbelief.
Behind You Ye, Zhao Jingqing froze as well, as if the two of them had received shocking news at the same moment.
You Ye turned, puzzled.
"What happened? Why do you look like that?"
Luo Ma frowned. He had never seen Tian Nan make that expression before.
Neither of them spoke. They simply waited.
After a long while, Tian Nan exchanged a glance with Zhao Jingqing. Then, with an apologetic expression, he looked at You Ye.
"You Ye, I still have something urgent to deal with. As for the archetype discussion, I'll arrange a quiet, sealed room so you can communicate with the spirits properly."
"No problem. If anything comes up, you can always come to me."
Seeing that Tian Nan didn't intend to explain, You Ye didn't pry. He assumed it was an internal business of the Inspectorate.
"Thank you," Tian Nan said sincerely, then turned to Luo Ma.
"Old Luo, I'll leave You Ye in your care."
"No worries. I'm benefiting from this, too," Luo Ma waved it off.
After the arrangements, You Ye and Luo Ma followed Wang Cheng to a sealed chamber inside the Inspectorate.
Watching You Ye's back disappear down the corridor, Tian Nan and Zhao Jingqing silently entered the equipment room.
"The Numeron God… has passed away," Tian Nan said quietly. "What's the Duel Association's stance?"
He looked at Zhao Jingqing, his expression complicated.
"The same old rule," Zhao Jingqing replied. "Find the person first. Everything else comes after."
Just moments ago, both of them had received the same message:
The duelist who had ranked first in Master Duel for ten consecutive years was dead.
The evidence was simple.
Starting last night, the person who had monopolized first place for a decade vanished without explanation. The former second place had risen to first.
At first, no one took it seriously.
After all, that Numeron duelist wasn't officially certified at the Earth-rank, and Master Duel did have an annual rank reset. It wasn't unprecedented.
So every major faction mobilized its people, trying to locate which rank he had fallen to and when he would reclaim first place.
A full day passed.
Agents queued matches across every rank, searching nonstop.
They found nothing.
Not a single trace.
Given that man's personality—someone who would aggressively climb back the moment he dropped—this silence was impossible.
If he wasn't climbing…
If he wasn't making any noise at all…
Then there was only one conclusion.
He was dead.
"Find him…" Tian Nan scoffed bitterly. "Those family factions that usually stay silent—this time, they're more eager than anyone."
"Numeron is a king-tier archetype, the ultimate going-second strategy. Fully developed. No research required."
"This time… I don't know how many people will turn the human world upside down. How much chaos will be unleashed?"
His tone was mocking, but his face was grim.
In the past, even a Heaven-tier archetype could cause brutal struggles among factions. Entire nations' oversight organizations—like the Inspectorate—and even the Duel Association had been dragged into the bloodshed.
And that was with only a handful of individuals involved.
This time was different.
A king-tier archetype.
Any duelist who hadn't reached king-tier—especially those ancient monsters stuck on the King's Path for years—would come out of hiding.
Everyone would hunt for that final opportunity.
"I just hope… " It's not in Dragon Country," Tian Nan muttered.
Zhao Jingqing remained silent.
She and Tian Nan were among the strongest of king-tier duelists—but even so…
Her deck information had long since been dissected and studied.
Tian Nan, on the other hand, had recently acquired the terrifying Cyberse Pile deck. Its exact structure was still unknown, but its existence alone was no secret among king-tier duelists.
Against old monsters from the previous era—who hid countless trump cards—could they really win?
At least until she obtained the P.U.N.K. archetype, she wasn't confident.
They exchanged a look.
No matter what, vigilance was necessary in the coming days—even if everyone was still in the "searching" phase.
"I really hope he died in the Spirit World," Zhao Jingqing said quietly.
"Yes," Tian Nan nodded. "If he died there, then no matter how they fight over it later, it won't fall on the human world."
As he spoke, his gaze shifted to the wall, as if piercing through stone and steel.
"And the Numeron issue isn't our only concern."
"When those old monsters appear… they might set their sights on You Ye."
Zhao Jingqing said nothing.
She didn't mention that Tearlaments could only be inherited by one person.
Because at this point, whether the Numeron archetype could only belong to one person no longer mattered.
Those old monsters—especially the lone wolves—had only one goal: stronger archetypes.
You Ye, with no family backing and only Earth-rank certification, was an obvious target.
Especially once they failed to find Numeron.
At that moment, You Ye knew none of this.
After chatting with Luo Ma, he discovered that Luo Ma also possessed the Salamangreat archetype. As a result, You Ye directly obtained both Code Talker and Salamangreat.
Combined with the generic Cyberse staples he already owned, he was now missing only one thing.
Salamangreat itself.
When he returned to the shop, Bai Yun'er, Bai Lingtian, and Bai Yu were pacing anxiously around the living room.
"Is Riseheart already dealt with? Why are you all so anxious?" You, Ye, asked in confusion.
"My lord, how can you still be so calm at a time like this?" Bai Lingtian said urgently.
"The news is out. It can't be hidden anymore!"
"???"
You, Ye, was even more confused.
What exactly had he been hiding?
Suddenly, he thought of something—his Master Duel rank.
Did the rank reset expose him?
He looked at Ouyang Yanyan. She shook her head.
So, You Ye asked, "You all know already? That means… everyone knows?"
"Only part of it," Bai Yu said seriously.
"As the inheritor of that archetype, you must obtain it immediately. If the old monsters find out first, it'll be too late!"
"Wait," You Ye interrupted, baffled.
"Inheritor? You're not talking about me holding first place in Master Duel for ten years?"
The room fell silent.
White House trio froze completely.
Their minds were filled with question marks.
But the more they thought about it… the more it made sense.
Why did You Ye have so many Master Duel privileges?
Why did he possess so many primal cards?
Why his rank vanished after Earth-rank certification—and why he never bothered to climb back.
Because he was busy.
Who had time to grind ranks?
The only "problem" was that You Ye had never used Numeron cards in front of them.
But then again…
Everyone here knew You Ye possessed countless archetypes he had never shown.
So why wouldn't he have Numeron as well?
"Wait… It's not that?" You Ye asked, frowning.
"It's not wrong," Bai Yu said slowly, "but once you put it that way, it becomes even more outrageous."
"Explain," You Ye said, intrigued.
Bai Yu told him everything.
After hearing it all, You Ye was first shocked—then amused.
The Master Duel system in this world was even more extreme than in his previous life.
No avatars.
No chat.
No aliases.
To duel someone, you had to create a room and enter manually.
That was why everyone had reached this conclusion.
And now, many old monsters were already targeting his Master Duel identity.
Thinking of this, You Ye smiled.
Let them search.
He would grind ranks with a different deck later.
Let them witness the absurd going-second OTK power of Tenpai Dragon.
After reaching first place again…
He'd reveal himself.
"It was me. All of it."
Surprised?
Delighted?
Watching You Ye enjoy the situation, the Bai family wore strange expressions.
"My lord," Bai Yu asked after a long silence, "should we inform Yu Huo?"
You, Ye, paused, then nodded.
"Contact him. Tell him I want to see him."
After Bai Yu left, You Ye turned to Ouyang Yanyan.
"Any new archetypes recently?"
"Yes. I wrote them all down," she said respectfully, handing him a notebook.
You Ye, scanned it and raised an eyebrow.
One entry caught his attention.
Voiceless Voice.
Not overwhelmingly strong, but as an engine, extremely solid.
In this primitive world, its strength was more than sufficient—though it didn't add much to his own decks.
"I'll teach you the effects and combos for these," You Ye said.
Ouyang Yanyan nodded eagerly.
That evening, after several hours of teaching, You Ye finally left the shop.
For the first time in a while, he took Muning and Melo out to enjoy Hangzhou's night market.
Mainly to eat.
Their tastes differed greatly.
Melo disliked hot food and preferred fish dishes.
Muning favored light flavors and couldn't handle spice at all.
Late at night, You Ye returned home, still full of energy.
He planned to grind ranks again.
But the two girls promised him a "small surprise."
One day and two nights later…
(words omitted)
Only then did You Ye understand why Earth-rank certification was required.
Without the physical enhancement, an Xuan-rank duelist would probably die on the spot.
But damn—it was worth it.
The next morning, You Ye quietly left for the shop to continue his Master Duel climb.
Not long after, Melo and Muning opened their eyes.
"Muning… do you think we might be pregnant?" Melo asked softly, touching her belly.
"Probably not," Muning shook her head.
"Before humans obtain a 'status,' they can't really have children with us."
"Can Heaven-rank humans obtain status?" Melo asked.
"Normally, no," Muning replied.
"But Night is… abnormal. He's surpassed his predecessors every time. Maybe at Heaven-rank, he really can."
At the shop, You Ye reached Diamond rank by late afternoon.
Tenpai Dragon was simply broken.
No one survived the Battle Phase.
That evening, Ouyang Yanyan knocked on the door.
"My lord, Yu Huo has arrived."
"Let him in," You Ye said.
Yu Huo entered, eyes bloodshot, yet filled with desperate hope.
"Come," You Ye said calmly.
"The answer you want is here."
He showed Yu Huo his Master Duel history.
Nine years.
First place.
Yu Huo froze.
All doubt vanished.
"You are… the Numeron God."
Embarrassed, Yu Huo bowed deeply.
"Senior… I was arrogant before."
"It's fine," You Ye said, then looked at him.
"Do you want to become my servant?"
"Yes!" Yu Huo answered without hesitation.
After signing the contract, Yu Huo made one request.
"My lord… can you use Numeron once? Just once."
You, Ye, nodded.
"One duel."
"And I'll teach you something else," he said, flipping the coin and choosing to go second.
"The Seven Virtues of the Numeron."
"First virtue: Humility."
"We always let the opponent go first."
Looking at his hand—two Lava Golems, Forbidden Droplet, Numeron Wall, and One for One—You Ye smiled.
"The second virtue: Tolerance."
"If they want to build their board…"
"Let them."
We never interrupt.